Twitter Reactions: Sri Lanka claim their sixth Asia Cup title, thrash Pakistan in summit clash

Sri Lanka bowlers dished out Pakistan's lineup on the final delivery to claim a 23-run victory.

By Vaishnavi Thiagarajan Iyer

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Sri Lanka Team
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Sri Lanka Team(Photo Source: Mohit-sharma/Twitter)

The Asia Cup 2022 finale turned out to be one of the most thrilling encounters of the entire tournament. Both the teams gave their best in the game, but it looked like a bowlers’ paradise as the game neared its end. Sri Lanka’s middle-order batters led the team to a big total, and the bowlers picked up the game thereon to take the side to their sixth Asia Cup title.

The game started with Pakistan winning the toss and electing to bowl first. The Pakistan pacers were on fire during the powerplay, with Naseem Shah doing his job with perfection. In the very first over, he sent Sri Lanka opener Kusal Mendis back to the pavilion, thereby giving Pakistan the perfect start to the finale.

Just when the top-order batters had got the game going after the setback, Haris Rauf struck twice and got the prized wickets of Pathum Nissanka and Danushka Gunathilaka before the powerplay. The pacers did not let the batters have an opportunity to hit the big shots and as a result, Sri Lanka finished the powerplay scoring 42/3.

The bowlers kept their good form going, and were successful in picking up two more wickets in the next few overs as Sri Lanka faced a major downfall, losing 5 quick wickets at the midway mark in the innings. Pakistan’s celebration was put to a halt when middle-order batters Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Wanindu Hasaranga anchored the innings and added a major chunk of runs to the scoreboard. The duo shared a 58-run stand for the sixth wicket, but it was Rajapaksa’s unbeaten 45-ball 71* which helped Sri Lanka post a big target of 171 runs.

Sri Lankan bowlers shine, put up a phenomenal show

Pakistan batters enjoyed a gala time in the first over, as Dilshan Madushanka gave away extra runs in bulk. Before bowling his first legal delivery, he had given away nine runs and after his first valid ball. The bowler made a huge mistake under pressure to begin with, and he was hit for a boundary in his next over. But Pakistan’s moment did not last long, thanks to Pramod Madushan, who picked up two consecutive wickets in the fourth over to send Babar Azam and Fakhar Zaman back.

After a sluggish powerplay, it looked like the team would bounce back. Mohammad Rizwan and Iftikhar Ahmed held their places for quite some time, but the latter fell prey to Madushan and walked back scoring a 31-ball 32. That is when the Sri Lankan bowlers got the game going. They barred the opposition batters from scoring, and even Rizwan could not keep up with the run rate.

The game turned within just two overs, when Pakistan suffered a batting collapse. Chamika Karunaratne picked a wicket in the 16th over, and Hasaranga scalped three big wickets in the 17th to virtually put curtains on Pakistan’s hopes of winning the title. Maheesh Theekshana struck in the 18th over, Madushan picked up another in the 19th to complete a four-wicket haul.

Pakistan’s batting order came crashing down in the death overs as Sri Lankan bowlers dominated in the best way possible. Getting into the final over, Pakistan needed 32 runs in just six balls, and only some ridiculous miracle could have saved them from the defeat. Their plans did not fall in place, but Sri Lanka bowlers, nevertheless, managed to dish out the opposition on the final delivery of the game. Sri Lanka won the game by 23 runs and bagged their sixth Asia Cup title.

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Asia Cup 2023PakistanSri Lanka